As firefighters and ordinary residents toil at the black-red coalface of NSW's bushfire crisis, their story of heroism and anguish is being told to the world.
Since the disaster began unfolding late last week, more than 11,000 photos of the fires have been uploaded to Instagram.
From apocalyptic-looking smoke above the Blue Mountains' azure-green ravines to charred tree stumps and the blackened ruins of hundreds of homes.
Traumatised koalas and wallabies. Haunted human faces emerging from the soot.
And the legions of Rural Fire Service volunteers, ready, resolute and unmissable in their bright orange garb.
News that makes sense
Your trusted source for staying up-to-date with the world around you. Get free daily news updates and analysis, straight to your inbox.
It's all been documented on social media, instantly, globally, powerfully.
One image of firefighting brothers Josh and Matt Jones-Power lying on the roadside has been seen by 3.7 million people on Facebook, Fairfax reports.
Fire crackles nearby as the pair serving with Wallarah RFS apparently grab a short nap.
The picture, by Phil Hearne of the Newcastle Herald, has elicited 4300 messages of support and admiration from around the world.
Another fiery image posted to Facebook by NSW Incident Alerts with the text "We Say Thank You" has been shared more than 7000 times.
"Amazing firefighters - gutted to see the news here in the UK," one user commented.
About 600,000 bushfire-related terms have been posted to Facebook since Thursday, when the disaster took hold and the skies darkened.
The blazes have been widely covered by traditional media outlets too - across Europe, the US, South America and Asia.
Other posts and images, some from the frontline, have documented the brutal conditions faced by RFS volunteers.
One uploaded by Instagram user Bunniesbabe shows a firefighter fronting up to a furnace-like blaze among trees, covered in showers of sparks.
"Real heroes," one person comments. "I reckon so," Bunniesbabe replies.
There are parched koalas recovering under damp towels, being cared for by vets and volunteers, with requests for donations.
Twitter is running hot with evacuation warnings, fire alerts, tales of escape and bravery, with hashtags #nswfires and #bushfires trending highly as the crisis continues.
